What does a '70s disco music enthusiast living in Greece have in common with a dinosaur-trainer, a superhero family, an FBI drug unit, and a CIA agent played by Tom Cruise? They are all coming back for long-awaited second (or in Cruise's case sixth) instalments this summer.
Seriously — 2018 is the summer of sequels. Between Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, The Incredibles 2, Sicario 2: Day of the Soldado, and Mission Impossible: Fallout, there's a lot to catch up on before heading to theaters when the warmer months finally decide to grace us with their presence.
And while not exactly sequels per se, we've got some other big franchise projects to look forward to: Solo: A Star Wars Story, the second spinoff to come from the galaxy far, far away, will take fans back to a time before Han Solo even knew Chewbacca; Ocean's 8 is here to make all your Rihanna/Cate Blanchett fantasies come true; Crazy Rich Asians will make you question everything you thought you knew about money, and look great doing it ; and while The Darkest Minds hasn't been announced as a multi-movie project yet, I sense Hunger Games -like status in its future.
In the standalone category, we have The Spy Who Dumped Me, Susanna Fogel's female-driven comedy about two friends who get caught up in a spy ring after one of them is dumped by a James Bond wannabe ex-boyfriend.
And then, there's Tag.
Click through for a look at the movies we're most excited about, and the badass woman moments you should watch out for in each of them.
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Solo: A Star Wars Story (May 25)
Have you ever wondered how Han Solo became that stuck-up, half-witted, scruffy-looking Nerfherder? Well, here's your chance. Alden Ehrenreich will play a young Han embarking on the adventures that will make him the swashbuckling smuggler we know and love. Add in Donald Glover as Lando Calrissean, and suddenly the idea of another Star Wars prequel doesn't seem so bad.
Female Factor: Westworld 's Thandie Newton, Fleabag 's Phoebe Waller-Bridge, and none other than the Khaleesi herself (Emilia Clarke) are co-starring.
Ocean's 8 (June 22)
Who needs Danny Ocean when you've got his sister? Sandra Bullock plays Debbie Ocean in this gender-swapped reboot of the iconic heist franchise. And forget Vegas — these women are aiming bigger, and better on this job. Consider this your one and only invite to the Met Gala.
Female Factor: Cate Blanchett, Anne Hathaway, Mindy Kaling, Awkwafina, Sarah Paulson, Helena Bonham Carter, and RIHANNA. Need we say more?
Tag (July 6)
It started like any game of tag — or at least, any game of tag involving Jon Hamm, Hannibal Burress, Ed Helms, Jeremy Renner, and Jake Johnson. But fast-forward 30 years, and that same game is still going strong. The craziest part? This is all based on a true story.
Female Factor: Annabelle Wallis, Leslie Bibb, Rashida Jones, and Isla Fischer co-star.
Photo: Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures.
The Incredibles 2 (June 15)
The Parr family is back! This time, though, it's Elastigirl's (Holly Hunter) turn to save the world while Mr. Incredible (Craig T. Nelson) takes on a new mission: raising the kids.
Female Factor: It's nice to see a woman taking a front seat on the action for once, instead of being called in at the last minute to clean up a man's mess.
Photo: Courtesy of Walt Disney Pictures.
Jurassic World 2: Fallen Kingdom (June 6)
Are you thinking, "But wait, didn't the theme park get destroyed in the last movie?" Well, yes. It turns out that dinosaurs have been living it up, free from human interaction, on Isla Nublar for four years after the demise of Jurassic World, when a volcano explosion threatens their already precarious existence. And who better to deal with an impending extinction than Owen Grady (Chris Pratt) and Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard)?
Female Factor: Looks like Claire will finally be ditching her stiletto heels this time around.
Photo: Courtesy of Universal Pictures.
Sicario: Day Of The Soldado (June 29)
Described as a "stand-alone spinoff" of Denis Villeneuve's award-winning look at the blurred lines between federal agents tasked with stopping Mexican cartels and the drug lords they're meant to be investigating, this movie takes that nice, light premise and escalates it to the max. When Alejandro Gillick (Benicio del Toro) and Matt Graver (Josh Brolin) discover jihadi terrorists are using the cartel to get into the United States, they decide to end the cycle of violence. Their solution? More violence!
Female Factor: Not much to speak of. Here's hoping for an Emily Blunt cameo!
Photo: Courtesy of Richard Foreman Jr/SMPSP.
Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again (July 20)
The dancing queen is all grown up and about to have a baby of her own. The sequel to the ABBA-tastic musical picks up a couple of years after the original ending. Donna (Meryl Streep) has passed away, and a pregnant Sophie (Amanda Seyfried) calls on Tanya (Christine Baranski) and Rosie (Julie Walters) to help her get through it, and find out more about her mother's past.
Female Factor: A big chunk of the sequel will take place in the '70, with Lily James channeling a young Meryl Streep. Groovy!
Photo: Courtesy of Universal Studios.
Mission Impossible: Fallout (July 27)
CIA agent Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) is back in this sixth (!!) instalment of the action franchise. Cue music! You know the plot by now: the world is in danger, and Hunt is in a race against time to save us all. Only this time, he's fighting Superman, er sorry, Henry Cavill.
Female Factor: Queen Angela Bassett makes her M.I. debut as a CIA boss lady schooling Alec Baldwin, and The Crown 's Vanessa Kirby, Rebecca Ferguson, and Michelle Monaghan co-star.
Photo: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures.
The Spy Who Dumped Me (July 6)
We've all been there right? A guy dumps you, and you find out that he's actually a spy, leading you and your best friend to become part of an international espionage clusterfuck? No? Well, maybe that just happens to Mila Kunis and Kate McKinnon.
Female Factor: Susanna Fogel will direct this comedy, which seeks to turn the hot spy genre on its head.
Photo: Courtesy of Lionsgate Entertainment.
The Darkest Minds(August 10)
Based on the acclaimed YA series by Alexandra Bracken, this dark dystopian story takes place in a version of America where nearly all the children have been wiped out by disease. The ones who survived have special powers, and are placed in internment camps in order to contain and control them. Ruby (Amandla Stenberg) is one of those survivors, and when she escapes her camp and joins up with a group of other teens on the run, it sets off a chain of events that could lead to the downfall of a corrupt system.
Female Factor: The Darkest Minds is directed by Jennifer Yuh Nelson, one of only three female filmmakers tapped to helm a studio film in 2018.
Photo: Courtesy of 20th Century Fox.
Crazy Rich Asians (August 17)
When Rachel Chu (Constance Wu), an American economics professor of Chinese descent, agrees to take a trip to Singapore with her boyfriend Nick Young (Henry Golding), she pictures a low-key romantic getaway. (Maybe they'll go hiking? Taste some local cuisine?) So, it's quite a shock when she realises that not only is Nick's family one of the most prominent in the country, he's part of the .1% of the world's .1% . In other words, he's rich AF. And that kind of wealth, it turns out, comes with strings attached.
Female Factor: Let's face it: Astrid Leong (Gemma Chan) and Goh Peik Lin (Awkwafina) are the best part of Kevin Kwan's book, and I'm counting on more of the same.
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